The Authority of the King
Mark 1:16-45
Main Idea: Jesus has divine authority as King to restore all that is broken in our lives and the world.
Authority as Rabbi (1:16-22)
On the heels of Jesus’ announcement that the Kingdom of God was at hand and the invitation to repentance and faith, he begins his work by calling disciples to follow him. There are three distinct aspects to his calling:
Jesus initiates the call, reversing the usual Rabbi - pupil selection process.
Jesus calls them to himself, asking these disciples to redefine their inheritance and their identity in light of him.
Jesus calls them into a greater mission, taking their ordinary vocations and giving them new meaning and purpose as they follow Christ. He calls them from the place of chaos (the waters) and shows his mastery over everything in creation.
Jesus spent considerable time teaching in synagogues, and the people were ‘astonished’ with his authority. Unlike the Scribes, he was teaching without formal training and was appealing to his own authority, not some other school of thought or Rabbi.
“The word ‘authority’ literally means ‘out of the original stuff.’ It comes from the same root as the word author. Mark means that Jesus taught about life with original rather than derived authority. He didn’t just clarify something that they already knew, or simply interpret the Scriptures in the way the teachers of the law did. His listeners sensed somehow that he was explaining the story of their lives as the author, and it left them dumbfounded.” ~ Tim Keller
Luke 24:32: They said to each other, “Did not our hearts burn within us while he [Jesus] talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?”
II. Authority as Restorer (1:23ff)
Jesus’ ministry of restoration is two-fold:
1. Redeeming (1:23-27, 1:34)
Early in the gospel of Mark, Jesus encounters many demons or “unclean” spirits. They know who Jesus is and what he came to do as he brings his kingdom of light and life to push back the darkness. Jesus simply speaks an authoritative word of rebuke and the unclean spirits flee.
“The voice of Jesus is not like any other voice ever heard. There is a note of command over all that is, or was, or is to come. It’s a voice of authority, cosmic, universal authority, proclaiming the destiny of the world… This is the voice that has given confidence, courage, and hope to oppressed and subjugated peoples all over the world, and that reaches into the depths of every single human heart afflicted with anxiety, or pain, or confusion, or hopelessness.” ~ Fleming Rutledge
Though we might be skeptical of demon possessions, in the Scriptures they are an extreme picture of a condition that we all find ourselves in. Without the redeeming work of Christ, all of us are possessed, enslaved, and controlled by something (cf. John 8:34-36). Jesus has come to set the captives free from the schemes of the evil one and the sin that enslaves and traps us.
2. Healing (1:40-45)
Jesus’ encounter with a leper shows his total concern for sinners and sufferers. Leprosy was a horrible reality that included suffering:
Physically: Leprosy had no known cures or treatments, and severe cases (cf. Lk. 5:12) resulted in your body literally deteriorating and falling apart.
Socially: Lepers were not allowed to be near other human beings or inhabited places because they were contagious; they were forced to live in isolation without human contact
Spiritually: They were viewed as being “cursed” by God and had to declare their status of “unclean” to anyone who they saw coming near them
This leper breaks all social and religious expectations as he approaches Jesus. Rather than recoiling or scolding the man, Jesus has “pity” (lit. ‘anger’), and he touches him. Rather than the leprosy making Jesus unclean, Jesus’ holiness is contagious and he heals this man holistically.
By the end of the encounter, Jesus and the leper have exchanged places (Isa. 53:11); the leper is now on the “inside” and Jesus is on the “outside,” foreshadowing what will happen at the end of Jesus’ life as he is crucified outside the gates of Jerusalem, giving his life as a “ransom for many” (10:45).
